My MLG Dallas Experience

It was my first eSports event and I flew out from MD for it. I'll just start off by conveying the immediate and overwhelming thought that came to mind the first day of event - Starcraft as an eSport is an amazing thing and I hope with all my soul that it never dies (not that I fear it will die, since the "sky is falling" threads are over-dramatic in my opinion). Being able to show up at an event and see the players the person, and be around a bunch of other people who are passionate about Starcraft, is amazing.

The coolest thing about attending an MLG in my opinion is standing right behind the players as they play. This of course is when you watch players in the player area and feature stations, not on the main stage. It's very cool to just be able to talk to the people around you about the game and how you think it's going, and watch the hand speed and skill of the players from their FP view. Some examples of what I mean:

iNcontroL vs flo:

Liquid'HerO vs Polt:

Rain vs Vibe:

IdrA vs BabyKnight and Rain vs Polt:

JYP chatting with Rain:

Startale_Life after a victory:

FXOSirRobin vs MC. SirRobin won game one with a proxy hatch in MC's base on Daybreak. This was really cool to watch and listen to SirRobin talk about his playstyle after the game. It was just me and one other guy talking with SirRobin and it's just a great example of the connection you can make with players at an MLG event.

Leenock facing off at the feature station:

Liquid'HerO facing off:

SKT1 soO facing off:

Although the main stage matches are also awesome to watch, but mainly when the crowd is packed because it's an important match. On Friday and Saturday you won't see the main stage packed very often, but on Sunday most of the important matches are being played there and the energy is palpable. And let me tell you, it is awesome to be a part of a passionate crowd cheering loudly when one player wins a match. I can only imagine being at an event like MLG Anaheim or Blizzcon 2011, where the crowd was even larger. Here's some examples of what I mean:

Lastly, some odds and ends of more things that make MLG events awesome.

A broader view of the player area with the main stage in the background:

Creepy stalker photo of a Liquid'HerO smoke break:

Getting pictures with booth babes is great

And here's some of the swag you can buy at an MLG

All in all, I would love to go to another live SC2 event. Unfortunately I do not have any irl friends who play SC2. For this event, it so happened that my brother's girlfriend lives in Dallas so we made a trip out of it. This also meant that I couldn't stay at the convention center from opening til close, since they wanted to take breaks etc. Anyone who gets dragged along to these events who is not a SC2 fan definitely cannot last for long sittings lol. If they can, they're a saint. My only regret is not getting pictures with players and actually meeting them. But again I didn't really have the chance to stay for very extended periods. Although I did pass by IdrA and Anna on the sidewalk late one night which was kind of funny lol.

Bottom line - anyone who ever gets a slight chance to go to a live event, you should make every effort to do so.

I was the referee during SirRobin's match. I remember before the games when they were doing map vetoes, he said he was going to proxy hatch MC. Then actually watching the proxy hatch work on Daybreak, as soon as he won he looked up and a big grin went across his face xD

Just now saw that you all actually replied back in December lol. Glad you liked the read, and glad you got the pic Robin. I was hoping to go to Dallas again next month, but don't have anyone to go with unfortunately (I live in Maryland). Hope MLG comes to Baltimore or DC sometime .